birdied five of the next
10 holes. Let’s just call
it yet another delicious
Sergio moment and
leave it at that.

—Jim MoriartyLPGANordqvist awinner again

�� An interestingLPGA season in which

20-year-old Jessica
Korda won the first
tournament, followed
by Karrie Webb, 39,
winning the second,
turned into a tale of
redemption Sunday in
Chonburi, Thailand,
when Anna Nordqvist
won the Honda LPGA
Thailand for her first
victory since November 2009. Also in the
hunt were Michelle
Wie, who last won in

2010; Yani Tseng, who
mysteriously has gone
nearly two years without an LPGA victory;
and Julieta Granada,
whose only tour win
was the 2006 LPGA
Playoffs at the ADT.

Nordqvist, the

26-year-old, 6-footblonde from Swedenwho won the LPGAChampionship and theTour Championship asa rookie five years ago,started the final roundwith a four-stroke leadover Wie and InbeePark but let a bunchof players back intothe mix with a ho-hum36 on the front nine,including a doublebogey on No. 5, thenclosed things out withbirdies on five of thefirst seven holes of theback nine.Nordqvist’s clos-ing 68 on Siam CC’sPattaya Old Course puther at 15-under 273,two strokes better thanPark. Catriona Mat-thew closed with a 65 tofinish at 277, one strokebetter than Wie. Tsengand Granada wereT- 5 at 279 with StacyLewis, Gerina Pillerand Lexi Thompson.

"It’s been awhile,but I’m just sohappy to finally breakthrough again,”Nordqvist said. “Inbeekept pushing me at theend. I just really hadto stay strong. Hada rough first coupleholes, but kept playinggood on the back. Justunbelievable to getthat win again.”The tour goes to Sin-gapore for the HSBCWomen’s Championsbefore making itsUnited States debutat the LPGA FoundersCup, March 20-23 inPhoenix. In the season-long Race to the CMEGlobe, which offers a$1 million bonus to thewinner, Korda leadswith 587 points, fol-lowed by Webb at 552and Nordqvist with526. —Ron Sirak

MISCELLANYStricker fallsearly in return

�� After his brother
Scott received a successful liver transplant
the week prior, Steve
Stricker traveled to
the WGC-Accenture
Match Play for his first
start of the 2013-14
season. Unfortunately
for the Wisconsinite,
it was a short-lived
stay at Dove Mountain,
as he fell to George
Coetzee in the opening round, 3 and 1. ...

Decorated Australianamateur Minjee Lee,

17, won the Oates
Victorian Open on
the Ladies Australian
Tour by six strokes
for her first victory in
a professional event,
Feb. 20-23. Lee finished
at 16-under 279 at
Thirteenth Beach GL
outside Melbourne. ...
According to a BBC
report, the 2015 Irish
Open will be held at acclaimed Royal County
Down in Newcastle,
Northern Ireland. At
press time, the European Tour had not yet
issued confirmation.
... Former Rice golfer

Cal victorious at Burns
�� The event was weather-shortened to
36 holes, but that didn’t stop California
from exerting its dominance in the John
Burns Intercollegiate, held at Wailua GC in
Lihue, Hawaii, Feb. 20-21. Four Golden
Bears finished in the top 10, led by senior
Joel Stalter (second overall at six under),
as Cal’s 16-under total was good for a
nine-shot win over Brigham Young and
Texas A&M, the Bears’ fourth consecutive
team victory at the Burns. BYU senior
Justin Keiley earned medalist honors at
10-under 134. ... At The Prestige at PGA
West, standout Stanford junior Patrick
Rodgers led the way with a nine-under
204, as the Cardinal earned a two-stroke
win over Washington at 21 under overall in
La Quinta, Calif. Sophomore Max Rottluff
of Arizona State finished second at eight
under, while Washington senior Gerrit
Chambers took third at seven under. ...
The Bayou City Collegiate, played at GC
of Houston in Humble, Texas, was won by
Houston with a cumulative 31 under.
Cougar junior Roman Robledo earned
medalist honors at 12 under, five strokes
ahead of the field.

WOMEN’S COLLEGE GOLF
Meadow strong in P.R.
�� Alabama senior Stephanie Meadow
continued to assert herself in the Crimson
Tide record books, firing a five-under 211 to
share medalist honors with Purdue junior
Aurora Kan at the Lady Puerto Rico Classic,
held at Rio Mar CC (River Course) in Rio
Grande, Feb. 16-18. It was Meadow’s ninth
first-place finish as a collegian, six more
than any other Alabama woman player. The
Northern Ireland native made two double
bogeys in her first three holes of the opening
round, but battled back to play nine under
the rest of the way. The Crimson Tide
finished T- 6 overall, as Arkansas earned the
team title at three over, 14 strokes ahead of
runner-up GRU Augusta. —K. P.
recaps
competition